I was born and raised in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri. With family on both sides of the Mississippi River, I spent time growing up in both Missouri and Illinois. In college, people told me I had a southern accent—but once you hear where I’m from, you’ll get it. It’s just the St. Louis way.

Anything involving water—river, lake, stream, or ocean—I’m there. I recently bought my first boat, a 1977 StarCraft Holiday, and she’s in incredible shape for her age (mint, if you ask me).

I’ve always been an outdoors girl, never one to shy away from an adventure. My parents would probably say that’s their biggest worry—always wondering what I’m up to next. Don’t worry though, I’ve usually got my sidekick Reba, a husky mix that looks like a Dingo, along for the ride.

Even as a kid, I was drawn to the tiniest details—like spotting production slip-ups on TV or focusing on individual eyelashes in my sketches. I’ve always been fascinated by how design mimics the world around us, especially in nature.

At one point, I thought I’d become an architect—building dollhouses out of cereal and Pop-Tart boxes, armed with nothing but tape and markers.

Design has always just made sense to me. I’m constantly chasing ideas that stretch my creativity and push me to see things differently every day.